The rail network is expecting disruption until the end of the day (stock: Manchester Piccadilly) (Getty)A power failure is causing major disruption and cancellations of train services across a large swathe of the rail network.Trains across Greater Manchester, the Midlands and the northwest of England have been cancelled or delayed by up to an hour, National Rail said.The rail network is expecting disruption until the end of the day as it works to fix an electricity supply failure at one of its communications centres.Companies affected by the disruption include Avanti West Coast, East Midlands, Northern, TransPennine Express and Transport for Wales. Rail replacement transport has not been arranged for passengers. National Rail is urging passengers to check if their journey is affected on its site. Northern Rail said services are unable to run on multiple lines of route in the northwest of England and has advised customers to not travel. East Midlands Rail said trains on the Liverpool Lime Street, Nottingham, and Norwich routes are unable to run between Sheffield and Liverpool Lime Street.More follows on this breaking news story. Subscribe here to get the latest updates from The IndependentSeveral train companies affected by power failureDelays and cancellations are expected to be widespread on Thursday as eight train companies have been impacted by the power failure. Those affected include Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, London Northwestern Railway, Northern, TransPennine Express, and Transport for Wales. Harriette Boucher6 August 2026 15:39Mapped: Travel chaos expected across much of England until end of dayRail disruption is expected until end of day (National Rail)Harriette Boucher6 August 2026 15:34Widespread train disruption in Midlands and northwest England A power failure has caused widespread disruption on railways across Greater Manchester, the Midlands, and the northwest of England. National Rail has told customers to expect severe delays or cancellations until the end of the day.“A failure of the electricity supply at a communications centre means trains across the Greater Manchester area, Midlands and North West of England are being disrupted.“As a result, trains will be cancelled, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised.“Disruption is expected until the end of the day.”Harriette Boucher6 August 2026 15:31